Walker's Shortbread
{{Short description|Scottish food manufacturer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Walker's Shortbread Ltd.
| logo = Walkers-Shortbread-logo-2021.png
| logo_size = 250px
| logo_alt =
| logo_caption =
| logo_padding =
| image = File:Walkers Shortbread cookies.jpg
| image_size =
| image_alt =
| image_caption = Walker's Shortbread biscuits
| type = Private
| industry = Baked goods
| founded = {{start date and age|1898}} in Torphins, Scotland
| founder = Joseph Walker
| location = Aberlour House
Aberlour, Scotland
| area_served = Worldwide
| key_people =
| revenue = {{GBP|184 million}} (2023)
| num_employees = 1,500 (2023)
| products = Shortbread, biscuits, cookies, and crackers
| brands =
| website = {{nowrap|{{URL|https://walkersshortbread.com}}}}
}}
Walker's Shortbread Ltd. (formerly Walkers) is a Scottish manufacturer of shortbread, biscuits, cookies, and crackers. The shortbread is baked in the Moray village of Aberlour, following a recipe developed by Joseph Walker in 1898.
The company is one of Scotland's biggest exporters of food,{{cite news |title=Iconic shortbread maker Walker's slims product range and pays back £1.3m to government |url= https://www.scotsman.com/business/iconic-shortbread-maker-walkers-slims-product-range-and-pays-back-ps13m-to-government-2995754 |first=Scott |last=Reid |work=The Scotsman |date=7 October 2020 |access-date=3 December 2023}}{{cite news |title=Complaints over Walkers' shortbread sold under a Union Flag |url= https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/16066512.complaints-walkers-shortbread-sold-union-flag/ |first=Martin |last=Williams |work=The Herald |location=Glasgow |access-date=3 December 2023}} and employs over 1,200 people.{{cite news |title=Profits plunge at Walker's Shortbread takes shine off higher sales |url= https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/business/6206636/walkers-shortbread-profits-plunge/ |first=Alex |last=Banks |work=The Press and Journal |date=3 October 2023 |access-date=3 December 2023}} It is sold in tartan packaging all over the world.{{cite news |title=All you need to know about Walker's Shortbread |url= https://foodanddrink.scotsman.com/producers/need-know-walkers-shortbread/ |first=Maddy |last=Searle |work=The Scotsman |date=6 October 2017 |access-date=18 October 2021}}
History
The business was founded by Joseph Walker in the village of Aberlour, Speyside, in 1898. It quickly started producing shortbread.{{cite book |first=Emma |last=Kay |title=A History of British Baking: From Blood Bread to Bake-off |publisher=Pen & Sword |date=2020 |pages=113–114}} During the 1930s, two of Walkers' sons – James and Joseph – joined the family business. By 1936 they had purchased a van to allow for delivery of Walker's products outside of the local area. Joseph Walker, the founder, died in 1954 and passed the company to his children. By 1961, all three of James Walkers' children were also working for the firm. By 1970, the company had expanded to almost 100 employees, 14 vans, and two additional shops in the nearby towns of Elgin and Grantown-on-Spey. It had also expanded its baking operations in the store and its products could be found in British fine food stores. During the 1970s, the company would begin exporting to over 60 countries and by 1975 the company had opened its own factory."Walker's History and Heritage." Walker's Shortbread. [https://www.walkersshortbread.com/history-heritage/ Available online], accessed 17 September 2024.
The company started producing oaten biscuits for Duchy Originals in 1992, having been approached the previous year.{{cite book |last=McCrea |first=Diane |title=The Handbook of Organic and Fair Trade Food Marketing |date=2007 |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |location=Oxford |isbn=9780470996089 |pages=176–180}}
The profits of Walker's Shortbread, which is also still owned and managed by the Walker family,{{cite news |last=Bindrim |first=Kira |title=Walkers Shortbread names new CEO |url=http://newyorkbusiness.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070702/FREE/70702015/-1/rss01&rssfeed=rss01 |access-date=8 June 2015 |work=NewYorkBusiness.com |publisher=Crain Communications |date=2 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927070227/http://newyorkbusiness.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20070702%2FFREE%2F70702015%2F-1%2Frss01&rssfeed=rss01 |archive-date=27 September 2007 |url-status=live}} were diminished by a global increase in the price of butter in 2018 by around 50%{{Cite web |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/butter-shortage-why-prices-are-rising-and-supply-is-falling-2017-10 |title=The butter market is going crazy |first=Oscar |last=Williams-Grut |work=Business Insider |access-date=26 March 2019}} due to supply shortages and demand increases, resulting in the company seeing a 60% drop in operating profit.{{Cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-44871693 |title=Shortbread firm hit by butter price surge |date=18 July 2018 |work=BBC News |access-date=26 March 2019}} In 2023 the firm employed 1,500 staff and had a turnover of £{{format price|184000000}}.{{cite news |last1=Wilson |first1=Brian |title=Sir James Walker obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/dec/25/sir-james-walker-obituary |access-date=27 December 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=25 December 2024}}
The company rebranded, in 2020, changing its name to Walker's Shortbread Ltd.{{cite news |last=Symon |first=Ken |title=Walker's Shortbread returns furlough payments as it reports increased turnover and marginally reduced profits |url=https://www.insider.co.uk/company-results-forecasts/walkers-shortbread-returns-furlough-payments-22807332 |access-date=3 September 2021 |work=Business Insider |publisher=Insider Publications |date=7 October 2020}} It announced it was exploring how to create a vegan version of the butter-based biscuit in 2024.{{Cite news |last=Woolfson |first=Daniel |date=3 March 2023 |title=Royal shortbread maker poised to go vegan |work=The Daily Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/03/03/kings-shortbread-maker-poised-go-vegan/ |access-date=1 April 2023 |issn=0307-1235}}
Locations
Walker's Shortbread have their headquarters at Aberlour House in Aberlour and have a production site in Elgin.{{cite web |url= https://www.walkersshortbread.com/history-heritage/ |title=History & Heritage |date=2023 |work=WalkersShortbread.com |access-date=3 December 2023}} {{Self-published source|ABOUTSELF=y|reason=Company's own website, but probably reliable enough as to basic company facts.}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.walkersshortbread.com Official site]
Category:Food manufacturers of Scotland
Category:Bakeries of the United Kingdom
Category:Food and drink companies established in 1898
Category:1898 establishments in Scotland
Category:Companies based in Moray